The Mercy of Love
by Angst-BuriTTo
Summary: TIBBS SLASH. Sometimes, The most Merciful thing is to end someone's suffering. DEATHFIC.


"You know, Agent DiNozzo, you could just end you and your partner's suffering if you just tell me what I want to know."

The man leaned over a battered and beaten Tony, whose reply was to grin and bark a forced laugh.

"Do you really think I'm that stupid, Lieutenant Merton?" Tony spat, seeing Gibbs out of the corner of his eye trying to untie himself, but failing.

They had been stripped of all their weapons, sharp objects and anything metal. They had even discovered Tony's belt knife, and Gibbs hidden boot knife.

Tony's only hope was that they would be rescued by their friends- but seeing as they most likely weren't even in the same state any longer, that hope was slim.

"You're just gonna' kill both of us if I give you the Codes, Merton," Tony smirked, "so why would I tell you when I could die a hero, rather than a traitor?"

Merton snarled, and backhanded Tony, who let out a grunt as he felt his lip split and tasted iron, not for the first time since they woke up here- wherever here was.

"You tell me what I want to know, DiNozzo, or I will make you regret the day your bitch of a mother gave birth to your sorry carcass!" The enraged man bellowed, and Tony grinned that he had pissed the man off, pushing down the anger at the slight to his mum.

"Now, see, that's not very nice, I'll have you know my mum was a nice lady, when she wasn't drinking my seas monkey's or dressing me up as a sailor-" Tony grunted again as he was backhanded again, panting.

"You know, DiNozzo, your boss is lucky that he doesn't know the Codes, or he'd be standing in your place right now," the man smirked "The only reason I ain't hurting him, is because I know he's been trained to withstand torture. But you-"

The man chuckled,and leaned into Tony's face, his fetid breath smelling rancid across Tony's senses, making him wrinkle his nose in distaste.

"You know, you should really invest in a breath mint or twenty." Tony grinned, then winced when he saw fire lite up in his attackers eyes.

The man stomped towards the table and grabbed a needle, priming it. Tony began to struggle, having seen videos of what the drug did to all ten of Merton's last attempts to get the Codes.

It wasn't pretty.

"Looks like I'm just gonna have to discard of you as well DiNozzo," the man snapped,

"You're not gonna give me anything. I bet Agent Gibbs will love watching you die slowly, and painfully, or maybe you'll kill him once the drug reaches your brain and you lose your mind," the man shrugged, as if he was deciding on a order of shrimp versus fish, not a man's life. "Who knows."

The man readied the needle, and ignoring Tony's useless struggling, he plunged it into Tony arm and depressed the plunger.

The last thing Tony saw before he passed out was Merton untying a unconscious Gibbs.

~•~~~~N~C~I~S~~~~~•~

Tony woke up slowly, agony lighting up every nerve ending making him gasp in pain, and yelp.

"Easy, Tony, I gotcha, relax,"

"Kind-kinda har-hard t-to Bo-boss," Tony stuttered through teeth clench against the sharp agonizing edges of agony slicing through every nerve ending in his body. The pain was never ending and didn't start in once place and end in another, it was spread out through his whole body, and he could swear he could feel his hair sting in pain.

"If you don't relax, it's gonna spread faster, Tony, you need to calm down."

Gibbs was holding onto Tony's clenching and trembling, bloody and beaten body, and Tony didn't have the energy nor the heart to tell the man that the feeling of Gibbs holding him was like a red hot fire poker on every nerve ending that the man touched.

"Don-Don't think we-we're gett-gettin' outta this o-one Bo-Boss,"

Trying to breath through the pain send rivers of agony slicing through every single inch of the younger agents body, and Tony attempted to bite back any sounds of pain from reaching Gibbs' ears, but biting his already painful tongue on make him whimper and gasp, causing Gibbs to run a hand through Tony's hair and grunt.

"You're gonna be fine Tony, the team will find us, and then everything will be ok, you got me?" It sounded like an order, but Tony could hear Gibbs' voice shaking and feelings that he had tried to suppress started cropping up.

"U-ugh, Eve-even if-f they-y fou-nd uh-us, Jeth-thro, there's no-o anti-antidote for this thi-thing. An-and they-they think we're bo-both outta' tow-town for the wee-week-e-end. Their no-not coming Jethro."

Gibbs shook his head, and Tony was shocked to see tears in his eyes.

They sat there for at least two hours while the pain steadily got worse, Gibbs trying to sooth the pain, but not succeeding.

The could both sense the unspoken feelings, the love that they felt for each other, but they both didn't say anything out loud, because despite Gibbs' outward denial, they both knew how this would end.

Finally, Gibbs broke the lack of words and spoke quietly to Tony, who no longer had any energy to scream or whimper, only gasp quietly.

"It's gonna hit your brain soon, Tony. Then the pain… well you saw what It did to the others… what they did to themselves…,"

Tony nodded, catching on to Gibbs line of thought, just as attuned to the man as he had been since they met in Baltimore. Despite what it meant, what Gibbs was thinking, all Tony could feel was relief.

"I-I fo-for-forgive-give yo-you Jet-jeth-ro, and I- I Lo-love-ve yo-ou t-too," Tony gasped as he started to feel a tickle in his brain, and clutch weakly at Jethro's hands.

"Ju-just ma-make it fas-fast, An-nd don't bla-ame yourself, no-not your fau-fault."

He felt Jethro lift him up until he was face to face with him, staring into his lovely blue eyes.

"I love you, Tony, so much," Jethro whispered, his eyes looking adoringly into Tony's green ones.

"I'm so proud of you, and I am so sorry that I couldn't protect you," Jethro sniffed, and Tony saw a tear slip down the older man's cheek. "I am so happy we had the years together we have, and thank you, for being the best man I have ever known." Gibbs smiled sadly.

"Say hi to Kelly and Shannon for me, and I'll see you soon enough."

Tony stated into Jethro's blue eyes, captivated by the love he saw in them, in the blue.

He didn't even notice when Jethro's left hand left his cheek, leaving the other hand stroking his chin, and moved to the back of his head. He didn't feel the slight pressure as Jethro readied his hands and twisted-

He didn't feel the snap.


End file.
